Macquarie’s trading engine delivers a powerful final result for retiring CEO

Commodities and markets drive Macquarie’s half-year surge

Macquarie Group Limited (ASX:MQG) generated A$2.478 billion in profit attributable to ordinary shareholders in the six months to 30 September 2026, a 50% increase on the prior corresponding period. The result was powered less by a uniformly stronger franchise than by a particularly forceful showing from Commodities and Global Markets, whose net profit contribution rose 83% to A$2.034 billion.

CGM benefited from higher net interest and trading income across commodities, asset finance, equities, and foreign exchange, interest rates and credit. Commodities income rose 30%, helped by client hedging across gas, power and resources, energy-sector financing and oil trading. Gains from asset sales in Asset Finance added further support, although specific impairments for a small number of counterparties also increased.

The result lands as the final reporting milestone for Shemara Wikramanayake, whose retirement was announced in July. The CEO succession announcement had named Greg Ward as her successor, and Ward assumes the managing director and CEO roles on 7 November. Wikramanayake, who has spent 39 years at Macquarie and eight as CEO, said she had confidence in the group’s momentum continuing under Ward’s leadership.

Asset management gains offset softer recurring fees

Macquarie Asset Management delivered a A$1.509 billion net profit contribution, up 28%. The main catalyst was the gain on the sale of Macquarie AirFinance, alongside higher equity-accounted income following asset sales by underlying investments and funds. MAM’s assets under management increased 3% from March to A$742.9 billion, while fee-paying assets under management rose 6% to A$530.0 billion.

That contribution came despite weaker fee income. Base fees fell to A$907 million and performance fees dropped to A$289 million, reflecting the earlier sale of the North American and European public investments business, foreign exchange movements and the timing of asset realisations. The distinction matters: the division’s capital-raising and asset base expanded, but the half-year earnings uplift was materially assisted by realised investment gains.

Bank growth comes with margin and credit pressure

Banking and Financial Services posted a more modest 6% increase in profit contribution to A$841 million. Its loan portfolio grew 9% to A$217.8 billion and deposits rose 10% to A$236.2 billion, but lower margins, competitive lending and deposit pricing, higher credit provisions and increased technology and staffing costs constrained the benefit of that volume growth.

Macquarie Capital moved in the opposite direction, with contribution falling 61% to A$278 million. Lower investment-related income and mergers and acquisitions fees outweighed a 20% increase in brokerage income, particularly in Asia. Its committed private credit portfolio nevertheless expanded 3% from March to A$28.0 billion, leaving the division exposed to the timing of repayments and asset realisations in future periods.

Dividend rises while capital and liquidity remain solid

The board declared an interim dividend of A$3.25 per share, 35% franked, representing a 50% payout ratio and an increase from A$2.80 a share in the prior corresponding half. Macquarie will issue shares under its dividend reinvestment plan at a 1.5% discount to the relevant market price, adding a modest potential source of share-count expansion alongside the cash distribution.

Macquarie’s Bank Group CET1 ratio stood at 12.9% on the APRA Basel III basis, up from 12.8% at March, while its average quarterly liquidity coverage ratio was 187% and its net stable funding ratio was 116%. Deposits reached A$244.2 billion and the group raised A$16.3 billion in term funding during the half, providing capacity for balance-sheet growth but also underscoring the scale of the funding platform Ward inherits.

The central question is whether CGM’s unusually strong market-facing contribution can remain elevated without a repeat of the asset-sale gains that lifted MAM. Macquarie itself retained a cautious outlook, pointing to interest rates, geopolitical volatility, foreign exchange, transaction timing and regulatory change. The next result will therefore test not simply whether profit remains high, but how much of this result can be reproduced through ordinary client activity.